Unfortunately, I did not find this informative website until after I had made the decisions regarding my treatment. I still find it helpful because many people have validated my choices. I was diagnosed with Grade 1, Stage 1a-b cancer with clear lymph nodes. I decided to have 16 rounds of radiation which I tolerated well. I had MANY side effects from anastrozole which severely diminished my quality of life. My onc was adamant that I try exemestane, but I declined because like others have stated, I felt that the lack of estrogen would most likely advance my osteopenia to osteoporosis and would potentially cause other long term side effects. She was NOT understanding of my decision and told me to “Go, live your life.”
I know that some people do not have a choice to opt out of aromatase inhibitors.
I would like to add this thought to others when deciding whether or not to have radiation. When the decision is made regarding radiation, we have no idea, if our bodies will tolerate an aromatase inhibitor. In retrospect, I am glad that I chose to have radiation, since it will, hopefully, provide some protection from recurrence. It is discouraging that the treatment for breast cancer still involves treatments that can potentially cause harm to our bodies.